Editing The Satanic Temple (section)

===Religious abortion ritual===
Following a failed abortion lawsuit in June 2020,<ref name="abortionMO">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s)/no by-line.--> |date=June 9, 2020 |title=Federal appeals court axes Satanic Temple abortion lawsuit |url=https://apnews.com/article/mo-state-wire-lawsuits-us-news-columbia-michael-brown-27b897fd742c1efe2e3272626c46ed70 |access-date=2021-09-07 |work=[[Associated Press]] |location=Columbia, MO}}</ref> the Satanic Temple announced a religious abortion ritual on August 5, 2020, which allowed members living in [[RFRA]] states to be exempt from "enduring medically unnecessary and unscientific abortion regulations when seeking to terminate their pregnancy".<ref>{{cite web |date=2020-08-05 |title=Satanic Abortions Are Protected by Religious Liberty Laws |url=https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/web-view?a=VLExP9&c=SugsqE&r=ud9D65s&m=STv7Lw&k=8e4ebb8d2d6664d18e59a8c7bf56fbd6 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210910201818/https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/web-view?a=VLExP9&c=SugsqE&k=8e4ebb8d2d6664d18e59a8c7bf56fbd6&m=STv7Lw&r=ud9D65s |archive-date=September 10, 2021 |access-date=December 4, 2020 |website=The Satanic Temple Monthly Newsletter}}</ref> In September 2021, as part of its opposition to the [[Texas Heartbeat Act]], the Satanic Temple wrote the U.S. [[Food and Drug Administration]], saying that it had a faith-based right to access [[medical abortion]] drugs, including [[misoprostol]] and [[mifepristone]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Kaufman |first=Amanda |title=Salem-based Satanic Temple challenges Texas abortion law, arguing religious freedom - The Boston Globe |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/09/07/metro/salem-based-satanic-temple-challenges-texas-abortion-law-arguing-religious-freedom/ |access-date=2022-05-03 |website=BostonGlobe.com}}</ref> Temple lawyers protest a specific [[Texas Heartbeat Act|Texas abortion law]], recently sustained by the [[Supreme Court of the United States|US Supreme Court]], arguing that the Temple's status as a non-theistic religious organization should ensure access to abortion as a faith-based right.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nowlin |first=Sanford |date=September 4, 2021 |title=The Satanic Temple begins legal maneuver to skirt Texas' new abortion ban |url=https://www.sacurrent.com/the-daily/archives/2021/09/04/the-satanic-temple-begins-legal-maneuver-to-skirt-texas-new-abortion-ban |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921074515/https://www.sacurrent.com/the-daily/archives/2021/09/04/the-satanic-temple-begins-legal-maneuver-to-skirt-texas-new-abortion-ban |archive-date=September 21, 2021 |access-date=2021-09-05 |website=San Antonio Current |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-09-04 |title=Satanic Temple takes legal action against Texas abortion law and says members exempt |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/satanic-templetexas-abortion-law-b1914346.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220618/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/satanic-templetexas-abortion-law-b1914346.html |archive-date=June 18, 2022 |access-date=2021-09-05 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref>

In 2022, ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' was overturned in ''[[Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization]]'', ending federal abortion rights and  allowing individual states to regulate their own abortion laws.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mangan |first1=Dan |last2=Breuninger |first2=Kevin |date=24 June 2022 |title=Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, ending 50 years of federal abortion rights |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/24/roe-v-wade-overturned-by-supreme-court-ending-federal-abortion-rights.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220625000826/https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/24/roe-v-wade-overturned-by-supreme-court-ending-federal-abortion-rights.html |archive-date=June 25, 2022 |access-date=24 June 2022 |website=[[CNBC]] |language=en}}</ref> Following this, the Satanic Temple commented on Twitter that the organization was "the leading beacon of light in the battle for abortion access", and that "a religious exemption [from the Satanic Temple] will be the only available challenge to many restrictions to access".<ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1540381792049430530 |user=satanic_temple_ |title=The Satanic Temple is the leading beacon of light in the battle for abortion access. With Roe v Wade overturned, a religious exemption will be the only available challenge to many restrictions to access. |author=The Satanic Temple |date=24 June 2022 |access-date=26 June 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220626161630/https://mobile.twitter.com/satanic_temple_/status/1540381792049430530 |archive-date=26 June 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In response, ''[[Jezebel (website)|Jezebel]]'' magazine critiqued the organization's position that a religious exemption would guarantee its members freedom to seek abortions even in states where they were no longer legal, criticizing its position as overly-simplistic, unproven, and put pregnant women attempting to use the Satanic Temple's religious exemption to have an abortion in legal jeopardy.<ref name="jezebel">{{cite web |last=Rinkunas |first=Susan |date=25 June 2022 |title=Don't Count on the Satanic Temple for a Legal Abortion |url=https://jezebel.com/satanic-temple-abortion-rights-religious-exemption-real-1849073332 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220626152151/https://jezebel.com/satanic-temple-abortion-rights-religious-exemption-real-1849073332 |archive-date=26 June 2022 |access-date=26 June 2022 |website=jezebel.com |publisher=[[Jezebel (website)|Jezebel]]}}</ref> Other organizations focused on reproductive rights, such as the [[Texas Equal Access Fund|Texas Equal Access]] (TEA) Fund, also commented on the Satanic Temple's position,<ref name="jezebel" />{{rp|q=Denise Rodriguez, communications manager for the Texas Equal Access (TEA) Fund, an abortion fund serving north Texas, said she's wary of TST promoting an unproven loophole, especially for people who manage their own abortions with pills. "[People] could possibly put themselves at risk for criminalization trying to do this," Rodriguez told Jezebel.}} with both the TEA Fund and the [[Yellowhammer Fund]]—an abortion fund serving the states of Alabama and Mississippi—having previously spoken out against the Satanic Temple's position.<ref>{{cite web |author=Yellowhammer Fund |date=13 September 2021 |title=The Satanic Temple is not the last hope for abortion access. |url=https://www.instagram.com/p/CTxdsd5J7am/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220626162829/https://www.instagram.com/p/CTxdsd5J7am/ |archive-date=26 June 2022 |access-date=26 June 2022 |website=instagram.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1435218714627035138 |user=TEAFund |title=PS - The Satanic Temple ritual doesn't work to exempt you from abortion restrictions. Stop spreading that misinformation. |author=Texas Equal Access Fund |date=7 September 2021 |access-date=26 June 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220626162146/https://mobile.twitter.com/TEAFund/status/1435218714627035138 |archive-date=26 June 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> Though the Satanic Temple offers a dedicated email address for members who encounter legal problems when seeking an abortion using its religious exemption form, former TST reproductive rights spokesperson, [[Jex Blackmore]], stated that there was "no guarantee" that the Temple would cover a member's legal fees or provide legal support. In response, the Temple's lawyer, Matthew Kezhaya, stated that part of the abortion ritual outlined by the Satanic Temple as the reason for its members' religious exemption required "consulting with your local minister", a step ''Jezebel'' noted was not mentioned on the Temple's website or either of its abortion ritual guides, and that in the case of "foreseeable legal complications", the Temple refers its members to Kezhaya "for further evaluation and discussion".<ref name="jezebel" />